Vrindavan Bhagavad Gita Study Group

Summarized by: Neelima Turaga Recap of the last class Arjuna asks the question, ‘what if i start on the path but don’t reach Moksha?’  Krishna says that even if you don’t complete the path of Yoga, that will continue into the next life and you will be born into a family & circumstance that is a conducive environment to continue your spiritual journey. We discussed some stories about perseverance and how our minds can be our enemy.  Also, talked about healthy detachment versus unhealthy attachment.  All three stories, discussed last week, have profound meanings. Positive way to take is that the work we put in this life is cumulative Accumulation of past spiritual progress jumps ahead of the mountain Prarabdha Karma.  Our past lives have propelled us on this path in this life. Ch 6 Slokas, Verses 43-45   On taking such a birth, O descendant of Kurus, they reawaken the wisdom of their previous lives, and strive even harder toward perfection in Yog. /43/ Indeed,...

Summarized by: Neelima Turaga The class started with Opening prayers,pranayama and meditation followed by recap of last week's class. We discussed the possible challenges of meditation - Given the "chanchal" or the fickle nature of the mind, it's very hard to keep it focussed and quiet for a long time. A very common problem we see is that many times people fall asleep when meditating. There are  ways to overcome this issue - try to eliminate some of the factors that can contribute to  it. - Do not meditate after eating -.Do not meditate after a heavy workout or when tired. - Pick a proper time to do it -  preferably early in the morning when you feel fresh and its calm and peaceful..  As our mind is not used to being in a meditative state, it can get stunned or in a state of shock at the seat of meditation. This can be overcome by letting the mind wander for a few minutes, letting the emotions churn and flow. Give it some time to settle down.  Foc...

Summarized by: Bala  Dhandapani After pranayama and meditation, recap from October 7th  class was summarized. Hanuman Ji’s relationship with Rama (ie as a Servant, as a friend and Oneself/Same) represent the three types of philosophy, namely Dwaita, Vasista Advaita and Advaita. Dwaita – when one considers different from Bhagawan Vasista Advaita – when one considers as part of the whole Bhagawan Advaita- same as Bhagawan. Eventually with all the three philosophies, self merges and is union with Bhagawan/Brahman.  With Dwaita and Vasista Advaita philosophies, something (a process/transformation) has to happen for the self to become one with the Lord.  In Advaita philosophy there is no process, with unveiling /removing ignorance, the self realizes Brahman.     Class watched the following videos of Gurudev Sloka 29: A person who has realized sees only Brahman and the play.  When the ocean is in motion, a realized person would consider that the waves a...

 Summarized by: Yamini Samatvam means treating happiness and sorrows or any dualities the same way. By default we all want to be happy, but we acquire all the desires and lock ourselves in the gift of sorrows and throw away the keys. Mahatmas are a good example of samatva at how they treat pain and sorrow the same. Most of them like Ramana Maharshi or Chinmayananda have suffered physical ailments, but never let the pain effect their happiness. We have a huge mountain of prarabda karma given to us at birth, which we have to exhaust in this lifetime. Although we exhaust some of it we accumulate more in terms of sanchita karma. Lord Krishna says, when you surrender to me fully, I will clear out all the accumulated Karmas. Prarabdha karma is what we are born with and our body has to go through the effects of it and sanchita karma effects the soul. Prarabdha karma is like an arrow that was released before you were born. No matter how enlightened our soul is, we still have to go through ...

Summarized by: Neelima Turaga The class started with Opening prayers,pranayama and meditation. After a recap of last week's class we proceeded with the next set of shlokas.  We looked at the translation of the Shlokas 19 to 25 and then went into the subjective analysis of the same. In Dhyana yoga we have so far learnt what are the prerequisites for dhyana or meditation. Once we have satisfied the prerequisites and feel that we are eligible, the next important requirement is to keep our mind calm in order to practice dhyana yoga.  We need to lead our life in a certain way in order to keep ourselves ready for dhyana. We need to maintain an equanimous state of mind as much as possible. A completely agitated mind cannot suddenly switch to a meditative state. Now we proceed to learn what has to be done right before or during the dhyana. The word "Samadhi" that came up in shloka 21 is that state where you experience oneness with the Brahman. There have been ...

 Summarized by Anuradha Bhaskara Mani ji and Sai ji started the class with introducing the study group, how it is conducted and if past members from post summer did the assignments. We also got to know a few of the new members who joined the study group. We did our opening prayers, pranayama and meditation for some time, followed by what we had covered so far in Chapter 6 th  till verse 16 th . We discussed the importance of 3 yoga’s. Karma Yoga- > has two parts -> karma yoga and karma sannyasa yoga-> this focuses on giving up attachment to worldly things, results of an action performed. This purifies the action. Bhakti Yoga-> This focuses on seeing god or bhagavan in all beings and also focuses on practicing the rituals while importance is on the higher Brahman. This purifies the Body. Gyana Yoga -> this is the path of knowledge. This purifies the Mind/Thoughts. This is done via Shravanam, Mananam, and Nidityasanam. These teach us the Nishkama karma-> doing ...

Summarized by Prema: What is the importance of the three Yogas, Karma, Bhakti and Jnana? The Bhagavad Gita Question #3.The Bhagavad Gita Question #3. What is the importance of the three Yogas, Karma, Bhakti and Jnana? Each of these yogas are paths to spiritual growth,liberation and Union with the Divine. The Bhagavad Gita Question #3. What is the importance of the three Yogas, Karma, Bhakti and Jnana? Each of these yogas are paths to spiritual growth,liberation and Union with the Divine. The Bhagavad Gita Question #3. What is the importance of the three Yogas, Karma, Bhakti and Jnana? Each of these yogas are paths to spiritual growth,liberation and Union with the Divine. Explain the BMI chart. The BMI chart has been used as a tool developed by Swami Chinmayananda. The body is the instrument through which life is experienced. Mind is the subtle instrument of emotions and thoughts. Intellect helps us experience reality. Faculty of reason governs the body and mind. The three concepts help...